This study aims to show the rapid expansion that is devouring the fertile agricultural lands in the plains adjacent to the city of Dhamar (Belsan, Hadyan, Bayan) and Wadi Al-Mawaheb, in which the cultivation of grains (wheat and barley), vegetables (potatoes, tomatoes, onions, etc.), and legumes (beans, lentils, and fava beans) are concentrated, which contribute greatly to meet the local needs demand in Dhamar District, as well as to feeding the local markets of the governorates of the Republic. This study followed the historical approach in studying the stages of urban development in Dhamar, and the analytical approach in analyzing and evaluating the change in land use and the impact of urban creeping on agricultural lands, based on information and data from different sources. The study found, over five periods of time (1973, 1990, 2004, 2011, 2021), an increase in urban creeping on agricultural lands. In 1973, the area of Dhamar City reached 1.6 km2, while in 1990 it amounted to 8.24 km2, and the area in 2004 reached 12.60 km2, whereas in 2011 the area reached 23.10 km2. But, the urban creeping of the city of Dhamar in 2021 amounted to 40.25 km2. This indicates that there is a direct increase in urban creeping on fertile agricultural lands. The study came out with a set of recommendations, the most important of which is activating the role of judicial and administrative institutions to limit random growth and the phenomenon of population schemes outside the scope of the official general plan of the city and criminalizing its perpetrators, in addition to developing and improving agricultural activity to achieve the largest income for farmers to ensure that they do not sell or divide agricultural lands into residential schemes.
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